E-budgeting should Continue
Workers complete the construction of Jakarta’s Semanggi Multi-layered interchange project on Saturday (22/4). The implementation of an e-budgeting system on government projects is appreciated because it is considered transparent and timely, with fund allocation sthat are in line with what is needed.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The e-budgeting system implemented in the Jakarta regional budget should be continued. This step is important to prevent leaks in the management of regional finances. The community’s involvement is also needed to supervise the budget use.
Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja “Ahok” Purnama confirmed on Tuesday (25/4) that the e-budgeting system will continue, unless the new governor does not want to implement it. The key to the sustainability of e-budgeting is at the regional head; a law-abiding regional head will force his subordinates to be law-abiding as well.
On the other hand, the governor can also order the Regional Development Planning Agency (Bappeda), as the main e-budgeting supervisor, to break it. Bappeda control the e-budgeting system because it was assigned to give usernames and keywords to local work units (SKPD) to include and propose budgets.
"The job of the governor is simple: dare to fire those who steal [funds]. Conversely, the governor can also order the password holders to steal," Basuki said.
Bappeda Jakarta chairperson Tuty Kusumawati said the e-budgeting system is better because its budget planning process is more transparent and timely. Also, the allocation of funds can be in line with the needs of the project, work programs can be explored clearly and chronologically, and budget realization can be done more easily. Jakarta has been using an e-budgeting system since 2013. It was fully implemented and carried out by 2015.
Jakarta adopted the e-budgeting scheme after it was discovered that a project had appeared in the regional budget without the approval of the City Legislative Council. The discovery was made during a prevention coordination meeting between the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
From the planning
The budget planning process is also carried out through digital means (e-planning). The SKPD includes the budget with e-components. The work plan of each SKPD must be concrete and realistic.
"In processing the working plans, we give passwords to heads of neighborhood communities, village heads, district heads and SKPD heads to include their proposals, both from the community and routine expenditures," said Tuty.
With the e-budgeting system, users cannot tamper with the budget at any time. Each SKPD is given a username and password to fill outa financial plan according to an e-budgeting schedule. Once the schedule is approved, the Bappeda will lock the budget. Outside the specified schedule, the SKPD can only see the plan without tampering with it.
According to Tuty, in observing the program’s application over the past few years, she found that it has several advantages compared to the old system.
Firstly, with e-budgeting, all activities and work plans are transparent. Second, any changes made in the budget can be traced with the system. Projects that were not mentioned during deliberations, such as the procurement of uninterruptible power supply (UPS), estimated to cost the state up to Rp 81.4 billion (US$ 1.38 million), can be traced and tracked. The data can also be cross-checked by an evaluation made by the Home Ministry. The auditing process is easier, so it is expected to minimize chances for corruption.
Each planning stage will also be well documented, Tuty added.
The current use of the e-budgeting system is reinforced by Governor Regulation No. 145 of 2013 on the Preparation of Regional Budgets and Expenditure/Regional Budget Plan Changes through Electronic Budgeting.
The electronic financial system is also regulated in Article 88 of Regional Regulation No. 14/2011 on Integrated Development and Planning System and Article 4 Paragraph 1 of Government Regulation No. 58 of 2005 on Regional Financial Management.
Merry Hotma, a Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician in the Jakarta Legislative Council, said that several related systems, such e-cataloging and the e-musrenbang (Regional Development Planning Forum), are a solution to reducing leaks in the regional budget.
"This system is what is needed to guarantee the budget [will be used for] the people," said Merry.
Achmad Yani, Prosperous Justice Party treasurer in the Jakarta Legislative Council, said the council will support a number of programs proposed by the governor and Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat, such as the procurement and operation of public transportation, such as Transjakarta, and other public services, such the handling of infrastructure and public facilities.
Public involvement
Tuty said the public can participate in supervising the regional budget by checking apbd.jakarta.go.id.
Yenny Sucipto, secretary general of the Indonesia Forum for Budget Transparency (Fitra),conceded that Jakarta’s e-budgeting system is effective in reducing the potential of budget tampering, even though it does not close the gaps 100 percent.
He urged the next Jakarta governor to keep the system and refine it to increase budget transparency.
"There has been progress, as evidenced by the uncovering of the UPS case," Yenny said, adding that eliminating the e-budgeting system would be a setback.
She recommended that the e-budgeting system allow for executives and legislatives to supervise one another. So far, the system provides access to the executive side, which leads to an unbalance in the Legislative Council.
To anticipate tampering by the executives and legislatives, Yenny recommended that the Jakarta City Administration increase public participation in supervising budget planning. It is not enough to present data openly on the website, but it must be explained in laymen’s terms so that the public can easily understand the information.
Separately, economist Faisal Basri said the challenge for the next Jakarta governor is maintaining the high standards set by Basuki-Djarot in running the capital.
"The [next governor] must perform better than the current governor. [Basuki-Djarot’s] standards are very high," he said.
Separately, Vice President Jusuf Kalla assessed there were no problems in the relationship between the central government and Jakarta City Administration following the Jakarta gubernatorial election.
"Because any governor represents the central government. Therefore, the governor and deputy governor will be installed at the Presidential Palace," Kalla said.
Kalla believes the central government and Jakarta City Administration will run in tune. Before the inauguration of a newly elected governor is not a good time to judge whether the relationship is working well or not, he added.
Kalla conceded the position of Jakarta governor is different from other governors in Indonesia because Jakarta has a special status as the capital city. One of the distinguishing factors is the election of mayors, which can be done by the governor himself and not through direct elections.
Last week, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung guaranteed that President Joko Widodo will cooperate with the winning candidates of Jakarta’s gubernatorial elections.
(INK/DEA/JOG/NDY)
